Roller table for glass machines



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A. E. EVANS ROLLER TABLE FOR GLASS MACHINES Filed Jan. 22, 1924 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 1,519,244 A. E. EVANS ROLLER TABLE FOR am's's' MACHINES Filed Jan. 22, 1924 5 SheefLs-Shee'l'. 2

A. E. EVANS ROLLER TABLE FOR amass MACHINES Filed Jan. 22-, 1924. 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR A. E. EVANS ROLLER TABLE FOR GLASS MACHINES Filed Jan. 22 l924 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR 2.

WQJWI---ilnlijllilli Dec. v 1,519,244

A. E. EVANS ROLLER TABLE FOR GLASS MACHINES Filed Jan. 22, 1924 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 I 15 annealing it. The sheet forming means and Patented Dec. 16, 1924.

UNITED" STATES ALBERT E. EVANS, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASS IGNOR T PITTSBURGH PLATE GLASS COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF'PENNSYLVANIA.

- ROLLER TABLE ron GLASS macn mns.

Application filed January 2 To all whom it may com-em:

Be it known that I, ALBERT E. EVANS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have made a new and useful invention in Improvements in Roller Tables for Glass Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to a roller apron or table for supporting a continuously formed sheet or' ribbon of glass intermediatethe sheet forming means and the entrance and of the leer through which the sheet is con-' ducted continuously for the purpose of the leer illustrated are preferably of the type shown and described in the copending application of Frederick Gelstharp, Serial No. 656,441, but it will be understood that the particular type of sheet forming means and leer are immaterial in so far as the present invention is concerned. Since the leer end and the end of the furnace or melting tank have a considerable range of movement due to expansion and contraction incident to a wide variation in temperature of the leer and furnace, the space intermediate the sheet forming means, which rest against the end of the furnace, and. theleer, is increased and decreased. An apron or table com rising a plurality pf spaced rolls is emp oyed' to bridge this space, and it is to this construction that the invention isparticularly directed. It has for its objects the .provision of an improved construction arranged to take care of, and adjust itself to, the in and out movement of the furnace end referred to. More specifically stated, it is designed to provide an expansible and n 4Q contractible table, in which the rolls, which constitute the supporting surface are mounted so that they may move toward and from each other, so arranged thatany addition to or subtraction from the totallength of the table is divided between the rolls, to the end that the spacing remains uniform, thus avoiding any unduly great spacing between two or more rolls wh1ch would permit theplastic ribbon ,to sag. One embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure. 1 is a side elevation showing the apparatus. Fig. 2 is a section through one of the apparatus of Fi 1 on the line IIII. Fig. 3 is a 'parti side elevation 2, 1924. Serial m es7,7o7.

and partial section through a part of the resents the forward end of a melting tank 7 having an outlet slot 2 through whichthe -m0lten glass flows by gravity between the water cooled forming rolls 3 and 4, thus giving the continuous ribbon 'or sheet of glass 5. The rolls 3 and A and also the five rolls 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 which receive the ribbon, are carried upon the casting 11 constituting the standards or supports of the rolls 3 and 4, such casting being mounted in turn upon the truck 11. The truck 11 is provided with wheelsv 12 engaging the track members or rails. 13. The casting 11 is slidably mounted on the top of thetruck, so that it may shift its position on the truck when the furnace contracts and expands and shifts the position of the rolls and their standards with respect to the truck. This truck 11 also carries the roller table made up. of the rolls 14 to 23, to which the invention particularly relates,"such table constituting the means for supporting the glass ribbon 5 as it passes to the entrance end of the leer 24. This leer is of the rollertype shown in the- Gels'tharp application heretofore referred to, being provided with a series of\ rolls' 25 which extend from one end of the leer to the other.

The series of rolls 14 to 23 are supported at each end upon a slideway made up of the pairs of plates 26 and 27, shown in detail in Fig. 8. These pairs of plates are secured together by means of the bolts 28 provided with the spacers 29 consisting of sections of pipe. .At their forward ends, the plates are provided with the lugs 30 between which lugs fit the ends of the metal bars 31 constituting a portion of the framework of the leer; The plates 26 and 27 are clamped to the bars 31 atthis point by means of the bolts 32. The other ends-of the plates 26 and 27 are supported in suitableguideways (Fig. '1) secured to the casting 11, the outer sides of such guideways consisting of the plates 33 secured in position by means of the bolts 34. The plates 26 and 27 are thus free to slide relative to the casting 11 at their right hand ends sorthat any movement incident to the e d of the leer moving to the right or inci ent to the furnace end casting 11 moving to the left is. taken care of at this point. The rolls 14 to 23 are mounted at their ends in suitable bearing blocks secured by bolts 35 to the vertical supporting members 36 to 44, which support: ing members are shown in detail in Figs. 5 to 7. p The members 36 to 44 lie between the'plates26 and-27 as indieatedin Fig. 2

and are provided with flanges 45 at their upper ends which extend over ,and rest upon the tops of the plates 26 and 27 and are free I to move longitudinally thereof. The memher 36 is fixed against movement away from the casting '11 which carries the rolls'3 and 4 by means of a pairofhorizontal-stud I The series of members 35 to 43 are 0011:

nected to each other and to the fixedlmem bers 36- and 44 by' means of the d agonal pairsof bars 51 and 52 lying on one side of the members and other-corresponding bars 53 and 54 (Fig. 2) lying on the other side of the members. These bars arepivoted at their upper ends to the members by means of 'the bolts 55 and at their central 'portions are pivoted together by means of the bolts 56. At their lower .ends, the bars are pivoted Y together by the bolts 57 and these bolts are free tomove vert cally in the slots 59 at the lower"- ends of the members 36-to 44. The foregoing arrangement provides a 'lazy tong equalizing device for the rolls 14 to 22, so that as the furnace expands and carries the casting 11 and the'end member 36 to the left, each of the rolls 15 to 22 is moved a fraction .of this distance, Similarly.

when the expansion of the leer 24 moves its right hand end toward the right, thus moving the member 44 to the right, the movement thus imparted to the member 44 is distributed between variousrolls 15 to 22.

The rolls 9 and 10 and 14 to 23 are driven from the shaft 60 provided with a suitable sprocket about wh ch passes the sprocket chain 61, the ends of the alternate rolls 10, 15, 17, 19, 21 and 23 being provided with sprockets around which the sprocket chain:

61 passes. The otherend of the shaft 60 is also provided with a sprocket around which passes another sprocket chain 63. The ends of the remaining rolls 9, 14, 16, 18, 20 and the, threaded plurality of spaced rolls movable toward 22 are provided with -sprockets around which the second sprocket chain passes. The ends of the rolls 9 and 10 are also provided with a pair of spur gears 64 and 65 which mesh with an idler pinion 66, so that the rolls 9 and 10 will be driven even if one of the sprocket chains 61 or 63 should be broken, it being important that a rotation of these rolls, which are located at a more or less critical point shall be always driven. The matter of the expansion and contraction of the table is taken care of in the chain drive. as just described by the use suitable idler 67, indicated diagrammat cally. in Fig. 1, such idler being held yieldingly in position by a suitable spring or counterweight as is well known in the art and requires no illustration.

What Iclaim is j '1. The combination with means for con tinuously forming a ribbon of glass, and a leer in alignment therewith for receiving it, of an intermediate'roller table, comprisIng a and from each other, meansfor fixing the end rolls of the series with respect to the means for forming the ribbon and to the leer respectively, and connecting means between the rolls whereby any movement of the-end rollers is distributedbetween the series to maintain a uniform spacing thereof.

2. The combination-with means for continuously forming a ribbon of glass, and a leer in alignment therewith for receiving it, of an'intermediate roller table, comprising a plurality of spaced rolls, means for fixing the end rolls of the series with respect to the means for forming the ribbon and the leer respectively and lazy tong supporting and connecting means for 'the' rolls whereby the spacing of the rolls is mainta ned uniform as the distance between the end rolls is increased or'decreased.

3. The combination with means for continuously forming a ribbon of glass, and a leer in alignment therewith for receiving it, of an intermediate roller table, comprising a plurality of spaced rolls, a slideway extending under the series of rolls at each end, bearing members for the rolls slidably supported on the slideways, means for fixing the-end bearing members with respect to the ribbon forming means and leer respectively, and lazy tong connecting means between the end bearing members and the other bearingmembers whereby the spacing between the. rolls carried by the bearing member is maintained uniform as the end bearing members are movedin and out.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 15thday of J anua y,1924-.'.

,ALBERT 1 3 EVANS, 

